‘My neighbour’s child has awful habit and parents’ response is wild’

March 21, 2026 4,048

Woman covering her eyes with her hands

A woman has opened up on a situation that is driving her ‘insane’ in her property (stock) (Image: Olga Pankova via Getty Images)

A woman desperately seeking to stop her neighbour’s child’s irritating habit has confessed that one significant obstacle is preventing her from intervening.

Turning to Reddit to discuss her neighbourhood dispute, she outlined an issue that is driving her “insane” following the installation of a basketball hoop on the boundary separating their two properties. “I moved into this house about three years ago and everything was fine until my neighbour decided his teenage son needed to become the next NBA star,” the woman explained in the Neighbours From Hell community.

She continued: “About two weeks ago he installed one of those heavy duty portable basketball hoops but instead of putting it near his garage or in the middle of his driveway he tucked it right against the edge of my property.” The woman proceeded to disclose that the hoop’s backboard is positioned mere inches from her external wall, directly beside her master bedroom.

“Every single time that kid misses a shot the ball slams into the side of my house with a massive thud that shakes the pictures on my walls,” she complained. “It starts at around 4pm when he gets home from school and goes on until 9pm or even later some nights.”

Due to her “highly stressful” job, the woman explained she yearns to unwind when she arrives home from work, instead of enduring the “rhythmic thumping sound” every five seconds throughout the evening. “I tried talking to the dad nicely and asked if they could move it just 10 feet to the left so it wasn’t leaning against my house,” she continued. “But he just shrugged and told me that his driveway is levelled better on that side and that it’s a free country.”

The “worst part” of the situation, however, is the fact the ball keeps landing in the woman’s flowerbeds, meanwhile. “I spent a lot of money and time on my landscaping this spring and now half of my hydrangeas are snapped because the kid just tramples through them to get his ball back,” she said.

The woman added that she had even caught the youngster on her Ring doorbell trampling on the flowers without a care in the world and after heading outside to confront him, she was met with a “blank stare” and a lack of understanding as to why she was so upset.

“I feel like a prisoner in my own home,” she confessed. “I cant even have the windows open because the shouting and the constant metallic clanging of the rim is so loud. I checked the local ordinances but apparently as long as they aren’t playing past 10pm there isn’t much the city can do about noise.”

The irate woman closed by advising that she was considering erecting a high fence, but this would set her back “thousands” for the privilege. “It’s not even about the kid playing sports it is the fact that they chose the one spot that impacts me the most,” she said.

Writing in response, one Reddit user quipped: “I think you need to install a motion-activated sprinkler for those poor hydrangeas. Every time that kid misses a shot, he gets soaked.” To which the woman admitted: “Part of me loves this idea way more than I should. Realistically I’d probably end up starting a whole new war, but the image of him getting blasted whilst trampling my flowers is very satisfying.”

Meanwhile, another individual poointed out: “He can’t be damaging your house and property like that. There are rules about things like that out there. Ask them to move it and to stop hitting your house. They should be some kind of city code about this in your area. Also contact the cops and ask them to come trespass the kid for coming it your property and destroying your flower and siding.”

The woman conceded: “You’re probably right. I kept second guessing myself because I didn’t want to be the uptight neighbour, but once it’s hitting my siding and they’re walking through my flower beds, it’s clearly past being a minor annoyance.”

According to the government, you can ask your local council for help if the neighbour dispute involves an activity that is damaging to health or a nuisance. This is known as a ‘statutory nuisance’.